


Peggy's Boxing Club

by rocknrollravenclaw



Category: Agent Carter (TV), Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-03-12
Updated: 2015-03-12
Packaged: 2018-03-17 12:24:51
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,782
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3529361
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rocknrollravenclaw/pseuds/rocknrollravenclaw
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It all begins when Angie hears Peggy boxing in her room. Before she knows it, Peggy's the leader of her own boxing club.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Peggy's Boxing Club

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first written fan-fiction, so I hope it's alright!  
> Also I know nothing about html formatting, so it might look messy. Sorry.  
> Inspired by this photo: http://41.media.tumblr.com/f89e9e924ffed288cf8a66d727a4263d/tumblr_myznnh2R231s4vdvfo1_1280.jpg

It all started when Angie heard Peggy practicing boxing in her apartment.

_Thump. Thump. Thump._ Peggy Carter wiped her forehead with her arm, feeling the sweat drip down her face. Her normally loose hair was pulled back in a strict ponytail, and she was wearing a sleeveless shirt over shorts. She delivered another hard punch to her practice dummy, hearing the thump as boxing glove met plastic. She glanced over at her clock. She practiced boxing for one hour each Friday morning, to maintain her fighting skills. It was nearing 11 o’clock, which was when she finished for the day.

Peggy focused on the dummy and was about ready to punch it when a knock came on her door. “Hey Peg, what ‘ya doing in there?” Peggy internally groaned. She really liked her neighbor Angie Martinelli — spunky, honest, and a talented actress — but she always seemed to interrupt at the worst possible times. Peggy was desperate to keep her employment with the SSR a secret from everyone, in order to protect them. Her last roommate, Colleen, had been killed when a Leviathan agent had followed her back to her apartment. She didn’t want that to happen to anyone else — certainly not Angie.

Her feelings for Angie were . . . hard to describe. On one hand she cherished having a caring female friend such as Angie. One the other hand, part of her wished for something more. But she knew that was unrealistic. Angie certainly wasn’t attracted to her in that way — and even if she was, Peggy would never endanger her friend like that. No, it was best that they should only be friends.

Peggy quickly shed her boxing gloves as she struggled to think up a satisfying lie. “I am . . . folding . . . my laundry.” She grabbed some shirts from an open dresser drawer and threw them on her bed.

“Folding laundry?” came the muffled reply. “I don’t think that’s the right way to fold laundry. Usually it doesn’t make that kind of noise. You need help in there?”

Peggy knew she’d have to let Angie in if she wanted Angie to stop asking questions. “I’ll let you in in just a moment!” she called out, yanking her hair out of its ponytail and hastily throwing on a robe to cover her boxing clothes. She walked over to her door, slide open the locking mechanism, and pulled the door open.

Angie was standing outside, wearing a light blue dress that reached to her knees. As soon as the door was fully open she crinkled her nose. “Whew! Peg, you need a shower _bad_.” She boldly entered Peggy’s room.

Peggy couldn’t help but smile. “Thank you for your honesty Angie,” she said, studying her friend. Damn, that dress made her look cute. Her hair was slightly curled and she was wearing some pale lipstick. Peggy closed the door and tried casually blocking the boxing dummy.

“Well, you need someone to tell you the truth. Now, English, let me show you how to properly fold laundry.” Angie picked up a shirt as Peggy noticed her boxing gloves were still in plan sight. She slowly moved away from the dummy as Angie chattered about how to fold a shirt, creeping over to the boxing gloves.

“Thank you for your help, Angie, but I am aware of how to fold a shirt,” Peggy said. She bent down to pick up the gloves.

Angie put her hands on her hips. “You sure about that?” Just then she caught sight of the gloves. “Are those boxing gloves? I didn’t know you were a boxer!”

Peggy grimaced. How could she cover up this? “I, um, thought it might be good to know. There are cruel men out there.” That was all too true.

“I hear ya English. There are plenty of customers I would love to sock in the face. Always giving me crappy tips and tryin’ to touch what ain’t theirs.” Angie picked up one of the gloves admiringly. “That’s what that thumping noise is! You’ve been practicing in here.”

“Well . . . yes, actually.” Now that her secret was out, Peggy decided she shouldn’t get her robe all covered in sweat. She took off her robe, revealing her boxing clothes.

Angie’s eyes widened. “Those are some muscles you’ve got there. You must do this a lot.”

Peggy tossed her robe in her dirty clothes bin. “Every Friday morning. You’re normally at an audition.”

“Yeah, well, today I just didn’t feel like going. Nobody seems to think I’m good enough.” Angie sat on Peggy’s bed and briefly slumped. After a moment she jumped up enthusiastically. “Hey, why don’t you teach me how to box!”

Peggy was not expecting that. “Angie, I really don’t think that’s a good idea.”

“Come on Peg, it’ll be fun! We don’t spend enough time together. And I can become tough like you!” Peggy laughed as Angie comically flexed her non-existent arm muscles.

“I don’t know,” Peggy said doubtfully. “What if you get hurt? I don’t want to be responsible for putting you in the hospital.”

Angie gave her an charming smile. “Then I guess you’ll have to go easy on me.”

* * * * *

That morning, Peggy taught Angie a few warm-up exercises to get her ready to box. Angie wasn’t used to this amount of physical activity, and after 20 minutes was sweating furiously. She flopped on Peggy’s bed.

Peggy got her a glass of water, which she gratefully accepted. “Are you sure you still want to do this?” Peggy asked.

“Yep! I’m . . . doing . . . fine,” Angie panted. She gulped down the water, draining the glass. “This . . . is . . . fun.”

Peggy chuckled at Angie’s enthusiasm. “We’ll be done for the day. My shower’s open if you want to use it.” She suddenly froze. Where did that come from? Angie had her own shower; there was no reason she would need to use Peggy’s.

Angie nodded tiredly and padded into Peggy’s bathroom. “Thanks Peg. You’re the best.”

Peggy sat quite still as she heard the shower turn on. She cursed herself for having a crush on Angie. It certainly wasn’t going to go anywhere, and all it did was complicate things. Still, she had advised Angie to wear something more raggedy next time, something she wouldn’t mind getting sweaty, and Angie had eagerly described a striped dress that she owned. She said it was the ugliest dress she owned, but she couldn’t bear to give it away because it was a present from her mother. Best of all, Angie had said it only went halfway down to her knees.

Peggy reclined on her bed and smiled. Maybe teaching Angie how to box wouldn’t be so bad after all.

* * * * *

After several weeks of boxing on Friday mornings, Peggy and Angie moved from Peggy’s room to the roof. This was because of an incident where Angie punched the dummy so hard that it fell over onto Peggy’s bedside table, knocking the table over and smashing her lamp against the wall. Miriam Fry, the owner of the Griffith Hotel, had not been pleased with Peggy and Angie’s destruction of property. So they found it necessary to move to a more secluded location — hence the roof.

Peggy was still teaching Angie moves on the dummy, but promised next week to spar with her. Angie was starting to develop the beginnings of lean muscle in her arms, and was able to go for longer without a break.

Their first time on the room, Angie delivered a series of nice uppercuts to the dummy, as Peggy watched proudly. Peggy enjoyed the views the roof allowed them, as well as the cooling breeze. This had become the highlight of her week, and she was glad she could share it with Angie.

After practice, they sat on the edge of the roof, letting their legs dangle several stories over the street below. Angie lay her head on Peggy’s shoulder. “You know English, for someone who works at the phone company you really know your stuff.”

Peggy sat as still as she could, trying not to disturb Angie’s head. “I had a good teacher.”

Angie sat up and looked Peggy straight in the eye. “I think mine’s better.”

* * * * *

Next class, they opened the door to the rooftop to find they were not alone. A couple, who had been kissing passionately at the other end of the roof, sprang apart. The man straightened his shirt while the woman blushed.

Angie recognized the woman. “Bessie, you know the rules about no men in the Griffith! What do you call this.”

Bessie swallowed. “He’s moving tomorrow, and I just wanted to say goodbye . . .”

“Looks like you were doing more than that,” Peggy observed, keeping a straight face.

Angie threw an arm around the woman’s shoulders. “Come on, Bessie, lighten up. You know we’re not gonna turn you in, right?” To the man, she said, “You should scat. Be lucky the landlady didn’t find you first.”

The man nodded and rushed past them toward the door, quickly kissing Bessie one last time. Peggy rolled her eyes as she marched out to the middle of the roof. At least they were smart enough to canoodle on the roof, a place Miss Fry didn’t often search.

“What are you two doing up here anyways?” Bessie asked curiously.

“Peg’s teaching me how to box!” Angie said brightly. Peggy tried to shush her, but Angie kept talking. “She’s one amazing boxer. It’s good fun, and look!” She flexed her arm, showing some lean muscles.

“Wow!” Bessie closed the rooftop door and started walking over to where Peggy was setting up. “Is this a private thing, or can I join?”

Peggy exchanged glances with Angie. Angie clearly wanted Bessie to box with them, but Peggy wasn’t so sure. She had to admit, she liked spending this time alone with Angie, and she was reluctant to share Angie with someone else. But Angie was using her irresistible sad eyes, and at last Peggy gave in.

“You’re free to join.” Peggy was startled as Bessie gave her a giant hug. “But you have to bring your own boxing gloves. And I expect you to participate; no lounging around.”

Bessie released Peggy. “I will! This is gonna be a lot of fun!”

“It sure is!” Angie agreed. “Let’s teach you a few warm-ups to get you started, ok?”

As Angie started teaching Bessie how to stand correctly, Peggy watched, arms folded. She’d been looking forward to sparring with Angie, but now it looked like that wasn’t going to happen. Sighing, she corrected Angie when necessary, and informed Bessie on where she could buy boxing gloves.

When Bessie left, promising she’d be back next week, Peggy turned to Angie hopefully. “Are you ready to spar now?”

Angie gave Peggy a sunny smile. “Sure thing! Just give me a moment to breathe.”

“Of course,” Peggy said quickly. “While you take a rest, I’ll explain to you the rules of sparring.”

Angie waved her hand dismissively. “Who needs rules? They’re boring.”

Peggy looked at her sternly. “We need rules. Rules help control the match so nobody accidentally gets hurt.”

Angie pouted, but listened as Peggy talked. Then they began sparring. Angie’s punches were slowly and clumsy, and she forgot that Peggy wasn’t a plastic dummy that wouldn’t hit back. By the end she had barely even touched Peggy, who was faster with her punches and more on-target. For her part, Peggy had made sure to put little strength in her blows in order not to leave any bruises.

Angie was smiling as they made their way down the stairs to their rooms. “That was a blast! I mean, I was terrible and you were amazing. But it was fun!”

“Well, I’ve been boxing a lot longer than you. With time you will improve.” Peggy stopped in front of her apartment and turned to Angie. “Do you think that girl Bessie will actually come back?”

“Oh yes. When Bessie says she’ll do something, she really means it,” Angie said, leaning against her apartment door. “Before we moved here to the Griffith, we were roommates in an apartment in downtown. One day she said she was gonna be a model. I laughed and told her she didn’t have the figure to be a model. But sure enough, she walked into a modeling competition, wore one of the outfits, and won third place!”

Peggy smiled at Angie’s anecdote. “She sounds like a determined young woman.”

“She sure is.” Angie unlocked her door, then waved at Peggy. “I’ll see you next week, English.”

“See you, Angie.”

* * * * *

Somehow, over the next few weeks, word about Peggy’s Boxing Club began to spread. First it was Bessie, who had just been in the right place at the right time. Then Angie brought one of her coworkers, Charlotte, who was in an abusive relationship and wanted a way to fight back. There was no way Peggy could say no to her. Then Bessie brought her cousin, Fiona, who had just emigrated from Ireland and wanted to make friends. Then it was a girl down the hall from Peggy, Gail, who constantly heard the girls walking by her room and wanted to see what was going on. And more came each week until there were close to 20 women.

Peggy was pleasantly surprised by how motivated the women were. Sure, there were times when they wanted to stand around and gossip, but they all listened to Peggy. They each brought their own boxing gloves and practiced their moves on Peggy’s dummy, which was becoming more and more battered. As for Angie, Peggy sparred with her at the end of every session, until Peggy was no longer beating her easily. The other girls would watch the two of them in awe.

One Friday is was pouring rain, so Peggy canceled the class. The girls were bummed. They decided to crowd into Angie’s room and share stories about themselves. Though Peggy didn’t share much with the group, she managed to enjoy herself. They were so engrossed in telling stories that they almost missed lunchtime.

Somehow, without realizing it, she had not only started a club, but gained a group of diverse friends. Bessie giggled a lot and was usually one of the main gossipers, but she showed how caring she was when one of the girls slipped and skinned her knee. Charlotte gained confidence with every punch, until she was able to break off her relationship. Fiona was shy and quiet, but nimble and fast on her feet. She became close friends with a girl named Jenny, who worked as a teacher’s assistant. Gail and two other girls, Rachel and Samantha, were so eager to learn all they could about boxing that they asked Peggy questions all the time.

Peggy was pleased with her boxing club — and also a little disappointed. She didn’t get to talk to Angie much during the club, as they were both busy instructing and correcting the other women. Sometimes she’d share a look with Angie over the heads of the other women, but it still wasn’t enough. She saw Angie almost daily at the L&L Automat, but Angie was busy with other customers and didn’t have too much time to talk.

After each lesson Peggy would sit on the edge of the roof, and Angie would sit next to her. Sometimes they talked, sometimes they didn’t. It usually lasted a few minutes, until Angie left to take a shower. Peggy contented herself with that.

* * * * *

“Attention ladies!”

The women stopped chatting with each other and gathered around Peggy, who stood in the center of the roof with her gloves off. “You have improved much over the last two months. Angie and I believe you’re ready to begin sparring.”

The women cheered. Bessie raised her hand. “Can we choose our own partners?”

“This time, yes.” Peggy started walking down the line. “I will be observing all matches, and if I think some of the pairs aren’t taking this seriously, or just aren’t right for each other, I will switch them around at will. Now go ahead and choose your partner while I discuss the rules for sparring.”

They had an odd number of girls today, so Angie had to partner up with whoever was leftover. Peggy was slightly jealous, but quickly squashed that feeling. She knew they were going to be sparring later, so there was no reason to be jealous.

As the pairs began to spar, Peggy walked down the line, giving tips and reminding them of what they could and couldn’t do. She saw that tiny Fiona was getting pummeled by Rachel, who was much larger, and decided to reassign them. She placed Rachel with Kitty, a girl who was closer to her in height, while Fiona was put with Kitty’s former partner Gail.

Overall, Peggy found herself satisfied with how the matches were going. After ten minutes she ordered them all to take a break, then had them up and sparring again. Finally, when all the ladies were exhausted, she concluded the lesson.

“Thank you all for coming. You were marvelous today. It’s hard transitioning from fighting a plastic dummy to another person, but you did very well. From now on, we will warm-up at the beginning of class, then pair up and begin sparring.”

The women nodded, too tired to respond. Angie, however, stood up and put her hands on her hips. “Hey English, ain’t it time for us to spar?”

Peggy turned to her. Angie’s hair was mussed from her fight, and her striped dress was beginning to look tattered. Her cheeks were flushed with the activity and with excitement. Peggy was captivated by her. After a moment, she realized she had to speak. “Aren’t you tired?” she asked.

Angie shook her head. “I’m ready to go! Or are you scared I’m gonna beat you?” She gave Peggy a smile and raised her eyebrows.

Peggy rose to her challenge. “No, I meant are you tired of losing.”

A chorus of _ooooooh’s_ sounded from the women sitting in a circle around them. Angie strapped on her boxing gloves. “In fact, Peg, I am. It’s time we sparred without you goin’ easy on me. I got this.”

Peggy put on her gloves and started stretching. “All right. Just remember, you asked for it.” Shaking out her legs, she got in the ring they’d painted on the rooftop. Angie stepped in and faced her from the other side of the ring.

“Are you ready?” Peggy asked.

“As I’ll ever be,” replied Angie.

“Then let’s begin.”

Peggy immediately lunged forward and struck at Angie’s gut. Angie danced to the side and punched Peggy’s shoulder. Peggy stumbled slightly backward, reevaluating Angie. She had improved a lot since last week. She circled around Angie and feinted. Angie fell for it and blocked her face with her gloves. Peggy took the opportunity to hit Angie in the side.

The women prowled around the edge of the ring, each having landed a blow on the other. Peggy had forgotten to tie her hair back, and it hung on either side of her face, sticking to the sweat that was beginning to run down her face. She studied Angie, wondering when she would strike.

She got her answer immediately. Angie jabbed both her gloves at Peggy; Peggy ducked the one aimed at her head, while blocking the lower one with her gloves. She side-stepped to her right and delivered a punch to Angie’s left arm. Angie retaliated with a jab at Peggy’s gut. She didn’t quite hit Peggy, but she caused her to stumble. Angie then stepped forward and punched at Peggy’s face.

Peggy didn’t step back quick enough, and Angie’s glove smashed into her face. The glove had hit her right eye and cheek. Angie was horrified as she threw off her gloves. “Peg, I’m so sorry! I thought you were gonna duck.” The other girls were starting to stand up and crowd Peggy.

Peggy stripped off her gloves. She could feel her eye beginning to swell, and she covered it with her hands. “It’s alright Angie. You did wonderful.” The fact that Angie had landed so solid of a hit meant she had gotten almost as good as Peggy. She smiled at the thought.

Peggy then spent the next five minutes consoling the girls, assuring them she really was all right. To get them to leave, she told them she wanted to talk to Angie privately. They picked up their gloves and slowly sauntered away. Angie kept apologizing to Peggy, while Peggy kept telling her no apology was needed. At last Peggy and Angie were left alone on the roof.

Peggy gave Angie a big grin. “Really, Angie, I’m impressed by your fighting skills. You’ve improved so much since that first session in my bedroom.”

Angie nodded. “I’ve impressed myself! I had no clue I could do that.” Angie hesitantly took a step toward Peggy. Peggy noticed that they were less than a foot away from each other. “Can I see?” she asked softly, her hand reaching up to grip Peggy’s wrist. Peggy nodded, and Angie slowly removed Peggy’s hand from her face.

She gasped. Peggy’s eye had swelled up, and a giant blue and purple bruise circled her eye and touched the top of her cheek. “Oh Peg, it looks like it hurts. Does it?”

“A little,” Peggy admitted. The whole right side of her face ached, and she dreaded having to go to work looking like this. Her coworkers would take it upon themselves to ridicule her for having lost a fight. “But if you kiss it that might make it feel better.”

Her heart almost stopped as the words came out of her mouth. She hadn’t expected to say that. She felt her cheeks began to turn crimson. Well, they were out now, and she couldn’t take them back.

Angie didn’t look offended or even laugh at Peggy’s comment. Her face was serious. “Close your eyes.”

Peggy’s heart abruptly restarted, going faster than before. She closed her eyes. Angie’s hands were resting gently on either side of her head. She could sense Angie getting nearer and nearer. She felt Angie’s lips gently kiss her eyelid, and suddenly she realized that it did feel better. Angie leaned back a bit as Peggy opened her eyes.

Angie seemed nervous. “Any . . . anything else I can do to help?”

That’s when Peggy realized how idiotic she had been. Of course Angie liked her. The clues had been there for a while; Peggy had just been too daft to see them.

“Just one thing.” Without any hesitation, Peggy threw her arms around Angie and pressed her lips to Angie’s.

It was everything she had imagined it to be.  



End file.
